Play Nice Ziva
by shadowdweller25
Summary: "Ziva, no hair pulling." A woman joins in on their case from the FBI and Ziva does not like her. At all. Luckily McGee is there to be the reasonable one. #3 in McGee's Keeper series.


**"Identitiy Crisis" is the episode. The story is mostly Tim and Ziva with only mentions of McGibbs.**

**Hope you like.**

* * *

**Play Nice Ziva**

Ziva walked into the bullpen after using the restroom and saw Tim at his desk. Deciding to see what he was up to, she came up behind him and smiled at what she saw. "Ah," she cooed and chuckled as he clicked the next one. "Not bad."

Tim smiled at her. "Take a look at this one. You're just gonna love this guy."

"Yeah," she said, "he will not be safe with me. I will eat him."

"He's so adorable. How can you say no to that face?"

_'Exactly. I already have trouble saying no to your face,' _she thought with a small laugh at her own thinking.

Tony had been making his way to his desk and finally spoke. "Please tell me you're looking for a man for Ziva."

"Not me."

"Oh. McGoo, is there something you wanna tell me?"

Tim looked past Ziva and to Tony. "Looking at animal rescue sites."

"McGee's thing about getting a puppy," Ziva added.

She briefly wondered what Gibbs thought of that but figured it was Tim's decision in the end. Gibbs and Tim hasn't gotten to the moving in with each other part of their relationship though she doubted it would take long. They have been seeing each other for about seven months and those two were...passionate...about each other. Ziva was actually a little surprised they haven't moved in together yet.

"Puppy's a lot of work. You gotta feed it, walk it, train it."

Ziva felt the need to stick up for Tim. He wasn't a child who would get bored with it after a week. However, Tim was a big boy and could defend himself, no matter how much she wanted to do it.

"Yeah, I'm not twelve alright?" Tim said as he kept going through pictures. Now on Chihuahuas. Tony leaned down to look at the computer screen along with them. "I work hard. I deserve someone who will jump up all excited when I get home."

"Lay on the couch and watch TV," Tony said.

"Maybe lick my face a little bit," Tim smiled at Ziva and she couldn't help but lean in towards his face with a laugh and smile of her own. Both thinking the same thing. _'Gibbs can lick everything else.'_

Tony glanced at them before back to the monitor. "Might be easier getting a girlfriend."

Ziva made a noise at that one and almost felt like she gave them away. It would not be easy to get a girlfriend. One, Gibbs. Two, girlfriend is not male. Three, Gibbs. Four, she would have to first get clearance from Ziva before she could even get close to Tim. Five...Gibbs.

However she didn't give it away as Tim spoke before Tony could think of her negative sound. "Which might be easier with a puppy."

Deciding to take over the mouse to look at other dogs, she naturally reached for the mouse which Tim naturally let her use. They were used to taking the mouse from each other and both standing or sitting close to each other when using a computer during the few times Tim gave Ziva lessons on computers. Which was just sweet of him.

Tim and Tony spoke over her head.

"Even for you, Tony."

"I'm not ready to start taking tips from you on this Probie," Tony shook his head.

"Tony I think it's time you get back on that horse."

She paused and looked between the two. "Are you getting a pony?" _'I thought we were looking for a puppy.'_

"It's an adage," Tony corrected.

Ziva was confused. "I'm not familiar with that breed."

Tony sighed. "Well they are quite rare; sort of a cross between a Pegasus and a unicorn."

Now she knew he was joking. Needing space between them so she didn't give into her urge to strangle him, much less kill him; she stood back and behind Tim.

Both men glanced back at her but with different expressions. While Tony seemed to read on her urge and looked at her with a little bit of fear for himself, Tim read the emotion that she kept way down. She knew she was still trying to understand the American language, and they corrected her when she got it wrong, but sometimes Tony made a joke about it or made it so she was even more confused until Tim could explain it. Tim looked at her worried and silently asking if she was okay. She gave him a bit of a smile.

Tony turned back to the screen and spoke to get rid of the tension in the air. "So who's the favorite?"

"The pit bull," she said and saw Tim nod with a smile.

"Yeah," Tony said slowly and glanced back at her quickly, "that makes sense for you actually. Not really for McGee," he snorted. "He's more of a spaniel kind of guy. Cocker maybe?" His eyes went alert when he looked over Tim's head and should have as Gibbs came up to the other side of Tim to look at the screen.

He gave his half smile half smirk before making a suggestion. "How about an Australian Shepherd?"

"Huh," they murmured.

"They're working dogs."

_'We walked into that one,'_she thought as Gibbs instructed Tony to answer his phone.

* * *

She did not like Special Agent Courtney Krieger. At all. She was beyond annoying. As dinner take out came, she went over to Tony's desk where he and the woman were sitting and looked in the bag.

Ziva almost laughed as Krieger smiled.

"Uh, you have," Tony mumbled and Ziva stepped in. The woman had the right to know anyway. Right?

"You have mushroom in your teeth," she said and watched the woman stop smiling and grab a small bag from her purse.

"Where's your bathroom?"

"I'll show you."

Ziva went back to her desk and watched Tony and that woman pass Tim and head to the bathroom.

Tim came to her desk. "Hey, so I was thinking about the murder. Why kill him like that? An injection into the brain. Definitely not the most common method."

_'Oh Tim the different ways someone could be killed.'_

"To find out why, you must ask who." She looked up at Tim as an idea came to mind. It was in no way biased. "Someone tidy. Someone who doesn't like messes." She locked eyes on Krieger's bag and rolled out from behind her desk.

"You have a theory?"

"Someone who needs to be in constant control of the situation. Someone," and no her voice was not rising, "who does not like to lose control of their emotions." She snatched the big purse and opened it to go looking through it.

"Ziva what are you doing?" She ignored him and kept looking. "Ugh, I'm not an expert here but I'm pretty sure what you're doing right now is violation of the code."

She paused to look at him, explaining it to him slowly. "It is not against the law."

"The woman's code."

Scoffing, she grabbed the brush from the purse and put it under the light. "McGee, I bet you if we took a strand of her hair it will match the sample from Hinton's condo."

"Well of course it would," Tim said rolling his eyes and going back to his desk. "She's already said she's been there every week."

"This woman is uptight," she said looking at the brush. "Not even a single strand." She put the brush back in the bag, making her way from behind Tony's desk when she had a brilliant idea. "We will have to go to the source," she said pointing to Tim.

"Ziva, no hair pulling."

_'Of course he has to be reasonable.'_

"She was the only one who was in contact with Hinton. It would have been easy for her to just sweep him under the rug."

He sighed before asking, "Motive?"

"She's ambitious. He became too much of a complication. When someone is that uptight it's only a matter of time before they," she snapped her fingers, "snap."

"Okay." She sat at the edge of his desk while he leaned forward. "You don't like her."

Ziva hated how well he read her. And she would not admit to liking it, or admit to how small her voice sounded. "Do you?" _'Please say no.'_

"I understand what she's going through." _'Well that is okay. It is not the same as liking her.' _"I remember what it was like to be green and afraid you were going to mess up."

She couldn't help but point out, "Which she did."

"So what? You want to rub it in?" _'Yes! I do not like her!' _"Come on Ziva, I think she deserves a little bit of sympathy." She scoffed at that and got up from his desk. "Besides, Tony seems to like her."

Her head snapped around to look at him with a glare which he just stared back at. She decided to head back to her desk. "I do not think Gibbs does."

_'At least someone is on my side.'_

"What don't I do?" Gibbs asked as he walked into the bullpen to his desk, glancing at Tim before looking at Ziva.

"What do you think of Agent Kreiger?" she asked.

"Definitely has a lot to learn, but ambitious."

"Aha! See?" she said pointing to Tim as if it would make him see better.

Tim sighed. "That doesn't guarantee she did it Ziva."

"Who did what?" Tony asked as he and Kreiger came back.

Ziva went back to her dinner. "Nothing. Just jumping around theories."

"Bouncing," Tim corrected.

She blinked. "Is that not what I said?"

Tim gave her a small smile. "Sure."

Ziva smiled back and bit into her sandwich.

* * *

Ziva was ready to snap a neck. Where was Tim when she needed him? Krieger was trying to converse with her.

"Ziva, can I ask you a question? Is it hard being the only woman on the team?"

She brought herself back to the conversation and looked at her oddly. "No." She tried to walk away from the woman. Ziva had no problem being the only woman on the team. Besides, she met Tim who has kept her grounded, was able to calm her before she killed someone, and made her want to become an American and an official NCIS agent.

Krieger caught up with her. "God I wish I had your confidence." Her voice was wishful.

Ziva pause as that grabbed her attention. She turned back to Krieger. "It comes with experience."

"The way I'm going that's something I'll never get."

Her jaw clenched as she thought about Tim telling her about being green and worrying. She didn't want to, but she spoke. "Look Courtney, they obviously saw something valuable in you, otherwise you would not have made it this far."

"Thank you."

"But, stop trying to be perfect! You will mess up and occasionally you will take a beating."

"Then what?"

"You get back on that horse!"

_'See, I know I used that one right.'_

They spoke a little longer, talking about riding and how Ziva's uncle bred Arabians.

"Is this when we hug?"

Staring at her for a few seconds, she turned and walked away. She may have given the woman advice, but she was not suddenly her "best friend".

* * *

"You are to never leave me alone with Agent Krieger again."

Tim looked at her and she glared until he smiled and nodded. "Don't worry Zee. I won't let you kill the nice FBI lady."

"Good," she smiled back and they went back to the monitors and putting on their headsets.

Tony and Krieger were going undercover into the Indian restaurant as a couple while she and Tim monitored. With the camera in the glasses Tony were wearing, they could see where his eyes were. Krieger's backside filled the screen.

"On the waiter DiNozzo," she ordered.

They identified the waiter who was clean, and then watched and listened to Tony and Krieger talk. "Just pretend you like me."

"It's not too hard to do." She covered Tony's hand and rubbed it a bit.

"You have a really soft hand."

She decided to interrupt them. They were on a mission after all. "How is it going Tony?"

The two agents jumped and spilled water on the front of Tony's pants. Ziva started laughing and tried to cover it up but Tim's remark didn't help.

"Good thing we didn't put the mike in his pants."

* * *

Finally! The case was finished, they watched the FBI get the bad man, and now they just had to do paperwork.

Once she was finished, she put her report on Gibbs' desk and grabbed her stuff. "Heading out Ziva?" Tim asked from his desk.

"Yes."

"Me too."

"Then let's go."

Tim grabbed his stuff and after saying good night to the other men, they got into the elevator. "So . . ."

"Yeah?"

"Did you pick a puppy yet?" she asked.

Tim nodded with a smile. "Yeah, Jethro and I chose to go with what he suggested; the Australian Shepherd."

Surprised, she asked, "You and Gibbs are getting the dog together?"

Tim blushed but nodded. "Yes. We're...uh...we're planning to move in together first though. Actually, I forgot to ask you if you would like to help us. We were planning to do it this weekend."

Ziva smiled, still feeling all warm inside that Tim and Gibbs trusted only her with their secret relationship. Sure she helped Gibbs take that step to asking Tim to dinner, but they still didn't have to tell her. Well, Tim told her, but Gibbs didn't have a problem with it, especially since they've invited her for dinner every now and again.

"I am free to help you and Gibbs."

"Thanks Ziva."

"You are welcome Tim."

**The End.**

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**A/N: Please review. **

**Next in the series...Dog Tags. And it may be a chapter fic.**


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